USDOT said the cancellation rate through Tuesday this year is
slightly above the 1.5% cancel rate for 2023 but lower than any
other year since 2017 when it was 1.4%.
The Transportation Security Administration said last week that
U.S. summer travel has set a new record and is forecasting
record passenger levels for the Labor Day travel period that
marks the end of the summer season.
The TSA is forecasting it will screen 17 million air travelers
between Thursday and Sept. 4, up 8.5% over the same holiday
period last year. Airlines for America, a trade group, said
carriers plan to have 3.3% more seats departing U.S. airports
through Monday over 2023.
FlightAware and the airline group said carriers canceled less
than 100 flights on Thursday -- or less than 0.5% of flights,
but the Federal Aviation Administration warned afternoon weather
may cause delays at some airports.
The TSA screened 3.01 million airline passengers on July 7, the
highest number ever on a single day and the first time it
surpassed 3 million.
The software update last month by global cybersecurity firm
CrowdStrike triggered system problems for Microsoft customers,
including many airlines, and led to thousands of flight
cancellations.
Delta Air Lines canceled about 7,000 flights over five days,
affecting 1.3 million customers and taking much longer than
other carriers to recover.
The FAA is still working to address a persistent shortage of air
traffic controllers.
In June, the FAA said it was again extending cuts to minimum
flight requirements at congested New York City-area airports
through October 2025, citing air traffic controller staffing
shortages. Last month, the FAA required 12 air traffic
controllers in New York to relocate to Philadelphia for up to
two years to shift some New Jersey airspace responsibility.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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